It's impossible to overstate the importance of
Episode VII. Disney spent a small fortune on Lucasfilm, and there were plans in place for an entire slate of new movies. Before
The Force Awakenshit theaters, its fellow sequel trilogy installments had creative teams in place, and spinoffs
Rogue One and
Solo were in the works. If
Episode VII failed to connect with audiences, it would have been a disaster. Few people understood that more than Kennedy, and that's why she worked diligently to ensure the movie was as strong as it could be. She convinced an initially hesitant J.J. Abrams (who successfully revived
Star Trek) to direct, and commissioned a script rewrite when it was determined Michael Arndt's draft wasn't working. There was also a conscious effort in early marketing materials to distance
Force Awakens from the prequels, embracing the tone and aesthetic of the original trilogy.
The end results speak for themselves. At the time of its release in December 2015,
The Force Awakens was the most critically acclaimed series entry since
The Empire Strikes Back and
hailed as a return to form. It also rewrote the box office record books, grossing an astonishing $936.6 million domestically (a figure that will likely never be topped) and more than $2 billion worldwide. While some were quick to point out the obvious parallels between
Force Awakens and
A New Hope, the general consensus was that
Star Wars was back and people were excited about the future. Kennedy also (controversially) wiped out the old Expanded Universe, relabeling it as Legends. While supplemental materials like books and comics aren't a requirement to understand the movies, the reboot made them more accessible for newcomers interesting in reading more. Also, all mediums would be united under one canon,
creating numerous storytelling possibilities.
The first four films out of the gate all received positive reviews and
collectively earned around $4.5 billion globally (surpassing Lucasfilm's sales price).
Episode IX, hitting theaters December 2019, should be a massive box office hit and another proper cinematic event. Additionally, Kennedy has demonstrated she isn't afraid to take chances with Lucasfilm's prized possession. She signed off on Johnson's risky creative choices on
The Last Jedi (whether one agrees with them or not, it says a lot they didn't play it safe) and pushed for the tragic
Rogue One ending that killed an entire cast of new characters. Yes, filmmakers have to play by Kennedy's rules to stick around (as Lord & Miller will tell you), but a lot of the moves she's made are encouraging.
In the last handful of years,
Star Wars has also captured the imagination of a new generation of fans, giving the youngsters of today tales in a galaxy far, far away they can call their own. This ensures
Star Wars won't become a relic of the past as we get further and further from the prequels and instead continue to inspire viewers for years to come. Disney may be
planning a slowdown after Episode IX, but they have the Galaxy's Edge theme park opening and Kennedy has the future stacked with more
Star Wars content.
Jon Favreau's live-action TV show,
Johnson's new trilogy, and
David Benioff & D.B. Weiss' film series are all exciting propositions that'll explore new characters and fresh stories outside the Skywalkers. The possibilities are endless, and it should be fun to see what Kennedy and company come up with.